Just Another Stolen Heart
by Horse Treats
Summary: Howl and Sophie are in a healthy relationship, but Howl does not seem to be wanting to go anywhere with it. Sophie is lead to question-does Howl really love her? Or is she just another stolen heart? Movie-verse.
1. The Calm Before the Storm

A/N So I am not quite sure how to do these Author Notes—if anyone has a chance, could they explain? Please?—but this is my first story on Fanfiction, so please bear with me if I mess everything up! Reviews are greatly appreciated—especially the very bad criticizing ones! I am on this website to improve my writing!

Chapter 1: The Calm Before the Storm

Sophie had never felt so peaceful before. She was pressed up against Howl's chest; they were lying on the sofa that Howl had added to their flying castle in front of the fire. Sophie glanced up at Howl, his beautiful blue eyes staring down at her with love and affection. She made a small noise of contentment.

"Sophie? Sophie! Where are you? You have to come take a look at this!" And thus, the peaceful silence was broken as Markl yelled for Sophie. "Sophie!" came the next shout, with an emphasis on the ie part, as the name ended in a whine.

Sophie sighed as she swung her legs off the edge of the couch and Howl groaned. "Can't we just ignore him or something? Maybe he'll go away…" Howl suggested.

Sophie just shook her head. "You know we can't do that," she said. "If we do, he'll just get louder and louder until he finally comes to drag us away to see whatever he wants us to see."

As it turned out, what Markl had wanted to show her was, in fact, a doghouse he had made for Heen. "And I made it completely by myself, with no help at all!" Markl repeated for what must have been the hundredth time.

Sophie smiled to herself. Markl was a sweet boy, and he so obviously wanted to be praised. "I know, this is amazing Markl!"

The doghouse, actually was amazing. Markl had placed it outside in the garden. He had crafted it so delicately, it looked as if it had been done by a professional woodworker. Markl looked up at Howl, hope shining in his eyes. "What do you think Master Howl?"

When Howl hesitated, Sophie jabbed him in the gut with her elbow. "It's great, Markl. This is good," he muttered quickly, a slight trace of pain laced through his voice from Sophie's jab. He started towards the front door. "Sorry guys, I've got to go. There's some business I need to attend to."

Sophie was startled. "Where are you going?" she asked, and felt a little hurt that he wanted to leave just like that, but she shook it off.

"Just some things that need attending," he answered vaguely. Sophie opened her mouth to demand a more descriptive answer, but Howl was out the door before she got the chance.

I wonder where he's going. Sophie thought with a small twinge of suspicion, maybe he was back to his old ways of hunting down pretty girls…but she immediately crushed down on that thought. No, Howl loved her, and would not be unfaithful to her. It was then when Sophie happened to glance at the clock, and, to her dismay, see that it was already one o'clock.

"Oh!" Sophie cried, suddenly remembering. "I was supposed to meet Lettie for lunch half an hour ago!"


	2. The Seed of Doubt

A/N-So, here is the second chapter. Please, please review! I do not know if anyone is even reading this… Please! Sorry about the length of the first chapter. This one is a little longer, but I will try to improve the lengths as I go on. I'm sorry to all those people who love the book. I really have to get around to reading it, but I can't seem to find it anywhere! I hate to be one of those people who just sees the movie when the book came first and was wonderful and amazing and all, please forgive me!

Chapter 2: The Seed of Doubt

"Oh dear, Lettie I am so sorry! Really, I did not mean to forget and make you wait—" Sophie was saying to Lettie, but Lettie cut her off.

"No, no don't be sorry. I know how busy you are at the castle—isn't it flying now? And I've heard just wonderful things about that flower shop of yours! I really must come take a look at it sometime!"

"Oh, well, nonetheless, it is no excuse for making you wait! I am terribly sorry, please forgive me, I lost track of time. Oh, I could just smack myself!" Sophie said, still angry with herself about forgetting about her sister.

But Lettie didn't seem to mind in the slightest. In fact, she seemed to find this amusing. "Oh Sophie," she said with a slight trace of laughter in her voice. "You are such a worrywart! Don't you worry one bit! Now sit down so we can enjoy our luncheon!"

Sophie sat down, even though she was still unsure and worrying… _Oh dear,_ she thought. _Lettie's right. I am a worrywart!_

As she and Lettie chatted amiably about unimportant things, with Lettie filling Sophie in on the town gossip—apparently there was a girl who had gone missing and people were suspecting she had run off with her lover to avoid her marriage to a man that had made her pregnant. Sophie shook her head at this—leave it to these people to take a rumor and turn it into a scandalous romance story. And Sophie, in turn, answered Lettie's questions about her own life, how the flower shop was doing, how was Markl, etc.

However, all throughout lunch, Lettie seemed nervous. She kept twisting her hands in the folds of her dress and a few times it seemed as if she was going to say something to Sophie, but refrained. Finally, Sophie could take it no more. "Lettie, what is the matter with you?"

Lettie looked up at Sophie, the smallest hint of guilt in her eyes. "Wh—What do you mean?" she stammered slightly over the first word, which confirmed Sophie's suspicions—there was something up. Lettie never stammered; she was always the fluent, graceful, pretty one.

"I mean that you have been acting nervous and odd all through lunch, and it seems as if you want to tell me something. So spill," Sophie said, perhaps a little more forcefully than necessary, but Lettie just stared back at her.

"I—Well, you see—I—" Lettie stopped; then heaved out a loud sigh. "I really hate to ask you this, but…well…has…has Howl proposed yet?"

Sophie just stared. "Proposed?" she finally managed.

Lettie seemed exasperated by this. "Yes, proposed. As in asked for your hand in marriage—'till death do us part' and all that. Don't tell me you haven't even thought about it!"

Sophie sputtered at this. "Haven't thought—Well—I mean—you see—of course I've thought about it! But—umm, well—no. No, he has not." Sophie said the last sentence oh so softly and sadly that Lettie had to lean forward to catch it.

"Well…" Lettie began. "I mean, if he hasn't proposed to you… Please don't take this the wrong way Sophie! However…he is the Wizard Howl. Before you he was known as the man who preyed on pretty girls and stole their hearts. I hate to say this, but do you think he might not have gotten over his old ways? For all you know, whenever he goes out alone he could just be off to see another girl."

Sophie thought back to earlier when Howl had suddenly up and left without any description of where exactly he was going. Could he be…? No! She shook the thought away immediately. Howl loved her and was faithful to her. She repeated this to Lettie, but without much conviction, as if she was still trying to convince herself more than Lettie…

Lettie gave a small shake of her head, "I could be wrong. I don't know everything; I'm just saying what I am seeing. Sophie, I don't want to see you get hurt. If Howl really is just playing with you… well, try not to get too in love with him. He could still break your heart." She said gently. "However," she continued, her voice suddenly rising into a false, chipper tone, "I really must get back to the bakery; if I'm late my boss will never let me go out for lunch again!" Sophie chuckled, because Lettie always said that, and even when she was late, Lettie would always find a way to charm her boss into letting her leave for lunch to see whoever she wanted.

Sophie was dozing in front of the crackling fire—not Calcifer, he was off somewhere enjoying his freedom. However, he would be back, that Sophie knew. They were a family, and Calcifer would not want to leave them. She was off in a dreamscape, vaguely, she heard the door open as it allowed the freezing winter wind to blow into the room before it was shut with a quiet click. She heard and felt all this as if from a distance—and in a way, it was. She was off in her own dream world where it was just her and Howl, no one else. No problems.

Howl came in from the black portal and smiled when he saw his love sleeping peacefully in front of the fire. As quietly as he could, Howl made his way over to her. He sat down as carefully as possible on the green couch next to Sophie. He stroked her hair murmuring softly, oh so softly, to her. Sophie stirred, but did not wake and Howl gazed at her mesmerized. She was so beautiful…


	3. In Your Wildest Dreams

A/N: Here is chapter 3! A HUGE and so on, to animegal24! Thank you for reviewing! You are what prompted me to write this third chapter so quickly! So, without further ado, chapter 3!

Disclaimer: I do not own "Howl's Moving Castle". That belongs to Hayao Miyazaki and Diana Wynne Jones. I only own the plot of this story.

Chapter 3: In Your Wildest Dreams

Sophie was sitting on the green sofa in front of Calcifer, staring into the flickering flames blankly. She had finished cleaning and was just sitting around, helplessly wondering what to do now. Markl was off practicing a new spell; Heen was nowhere to be found; Lettie was working at the bakery; the Witch of the Waste was off somewhere up to who knows what and Howl… Howl had disappeared again.

Where could he be? Sophie thought. What if Lettie is right? What if he is seeing… however, she stopped herself abruptly. No, Howl was faithful to her, of that she was sure… "He is probably just out doing his duties of wizardry," Sophie didn't realize she had spoken the thought aloud until Calcifer stirred.

"Hu—Huh? Did you say something Sophie?" he said and there was a pop and crackle of flames as he widened his jaws into a huge yawn.

"No, go back to sleep," Sophie muttered.

"Why are you just sitting there?" Calcifer questioned. "Shouldn't you be out with…with…"

"Howl?" Sophie said bitterly.

Calcifer nodded. "I would think you two would be glued at the hip. After all he is your 'true love' and all that stuff."

Sophie looked away. "He might be my true love, but I'm beginning to doubt that I am his."

Calcifer stared at her. "What?" he exclaimed.

Sophie stared at her lap. "Well, he's always away, he talks to me less and less, he hasn't kissed me in a week, and I'm starting to think that he is going out just to get away from me and to get together with another girl!" she shouted the last part, her anger growing as she gave voice to the doubts in her head.

Calcifer stared at her, shock coloring his features. "Sophie—I—Howl—you—I don't think—" but he was cut off by the opening of the door as the very man they were discussing came in.

Howl was beaming and looking very pleased with himself. Pleased about what? Sophie thought angrily; her anger was already out of control. She didn't know how much more she could take before she snapped.

"Sophie!" Howl exclaimed. "How are you? What have you been up to?"

"I'm fine Howl. I've just finished cleaning. Actually," she said, an idea popping into her head. Why not try to spend as much time with Howl as possible? "I was just headed to the market. Do you want to come? You can help me carry things!" Sophie said brightly with a large smile.

Howl shook his head. "I'm sorry Sophie. I need to work on something. I just popped in to see how you are."

Sophie felt her face fall. "Oh," was all she said. This had to be the fifth time he had used his 'work' to wiggle his way out of doing something with her. "I see. I'm sorry, I shouldn't bother you with my unimportant ideas. You're obviously much too busy to care."

"What?" Howl looked confused. "Sophie—" but this time it was Howl who was cut off as the door opened once again, revealing Lettie. She had changed out of her work dress and was dressed in a short emerald dress with thin straps. Only Lettie could pull that off Sophie thought with a shake of her head.

"Lettie?" Sophie inquired, rushing to meet her sister. "I thought you had to work!"

"Well, there was this girl there looking for work, and my boss said that she could take my shift and he would observe her to see how she did. So I thought that while I was off, I would come over and finally get to see that flower shop of yours!"

Sophie glanced at Howl, he had wanted to tell her something, but it must have been private because his mouth is presently shut tight. She sighed; they would talk later. For now, she could have some laughs with Lettie over unimportant things. "Alright, come on, I'll give you the grand tour!" Sophie said with a smile.

Lettie laughed and together the sisters meandered over through the courtyard and into the flower shop. Sophie glanced over her shoulder to see if Howl was following. He was gone.

Lettie followed Sophie's gaze back to the empty room they had recently vacated. Her expression turned somber, "Oh Sophie…how has Howl been?"

Sophie turned her head away, staring straight ahead to the shop. "Fine. He's been fine."

Lettie made an exasperated noise. "Sophie! You know what I mean."

Sophie turned to Lettie, "I—I—I'm worried Lettie! No, I'm not worried, I'm scared. I don't know why Howl has been acting the way he has been lately! He's always gone, only giving me vague answers when I ask him where he goes, he never wants to go anywhere with me, and he hasn't kissed me in a week! What if—What if he's gotten bored of me?" Sophie didn't realize she was crying until she felt the salty drops slip into the corners of her mouth.

Lettie embraced Sophie, patting her back the way Sophie used to comfort Lettie when they were younger. "Well, then he's a very stupid, selfish, evil man if he has. You want to know why?" Lettie said gently and Sophie sniffled. "Because you are a beautiful, kind-hearted, sweet girl. If the Wizard Howl can't see that, then he must be the most blind, stupid man ever."

Sophie sniffled some more before pulling herself together and wiping her tears on her sleeve. "I'm sorry Lettie. I don't know what came over me."

Lettie smiled at her. "It's fine. It's good to cry once in a while. I often find that crying helps me feel better." And indeed, Sophie did feel better.

Then, quite suddenly, Lettie spoke of a plan seemingly off the top of her head. Sophie stared at Lettie as she registered what her sister was suggesting she do. It was absurd. Never, in her wildest dreams would she have ever thought of it!

"You…you think that will work?" Sophie asked hesitantly, hope creeping into her heart. "You think it will help me get Howl back?"

Lettie shrugged. "Well if he is worth it and actually loves you it will. If it doesn't bring him back to you, then he doesn't deserve you."

Sophie pondered this. She didn't think she could ever survive if Howl didn't love her, if he left her. Would she survive if this plan did not work? However, this plan would answer the biggest question she had: Did Howl really love her? Or, perhaps an even bigger question: did she really want to know the answer?

A/N: Thank you to anyone who has bothered to read this! Please read and review!


	4. Taste of Your Own Medicine

A/N: So, a big thank you to everyone who favorited and reviewed. Here is chapter 4! Please, PLEASE read and review!

Disclaimer: I do not own "Howl's Moving Castle". That belongs to Hayao Miyazaki and Diana Wynne Jones. I only own the plot of this story and Sarah.

Chapter 4: Taste of Your Own Medicine

Sophie nearly ran into Howl as she was readying to leave and decided to take the perfect opportunity to execute step one of the plan. "Oh! Howl, I'm sorry. What are you doing here?"

Howl raised an eyebrow. "Well, you see, I happen to live here…" he began in a dry voice. And Sophie shook her head with a sigh.

"Never mind," she muttered, somewhat annoyed.

Howl, however, did not seem to notice it. "Where are you going Sophie?" he asked, his brow furrowed, as if trying to solve a particularly hard puzzle.

Sophie drew herself up. "I'm going out," she said as loftily as possible. "I'll see you at dinner," was all she added before moving towards the door. She had planned on making a grand exit, sweeping out the door leaving a swirl of wind in her wake. However, things did not quite go as planned, as the door jammed and Sophie was having difficulty opening it. "Agh!" she finally cried after a couple minutes of door shaking. "I give up!"

Howl was watching the scene unfold with amused eyes, and finally moved up to Sophie, placing his hand over hers. "Here, let me get that," he murmured to her. He turned the doorknob slowly and softly until there was a gentle _click_ and the door opened to reveal Market Chipping. "Now," Howl said. "Why don't you tell me where you are going?"

Sophie sighed in defeat. So much for step one. "I'm going to the bakery to meet Lettie." Sophie admitted.

Howl nodded; satisfied that he had gotten a descriptive answer from her. "I'll come with you. I have some free time."

At the bakery, Lettie, Howl, and Sophie were all sitting around a table, sipping tea; when a young waitress came up to them. "Excuse me, Lettie?" the waitress said. "Mr. Miller wants to see you." Mr. Miller was Lettie's boss, a skinny man with thick glasses and a rapidly receding hairline.

"I wonder what it is now…" Lettie muttered before turning to Sophie and Howl. "I'm sorry; you'll have to excuse me. Sarah, could you keep them company while I am gone? I'm sure it won't be for long." The young woman nodded and Lettie was gone in the blink of an eye.

The young woman—Sarah—sat down in the chair Lettie had just vacated, and glanced over Sophie with a distasteful expression before turning to Howl, her expression taking on a smooth seductive smile. Sophie hated her already. "May I inquire you names?" she said.

Sophie sat there, stiffly, as Howl introduced them. "This is Sophie, and I'm Howl," he said, and Sophie was outraged to see him matching her smile with his own. The girl's smile widened at this.

"Well, Howl, my shift is over in about 15 minutes…" she trailed off, and Howl smirked at her knowingly. Sophie felt a pull at something in her chest right before her anger took over. Who was this girl, to think she could just come in and take her man? And why was Howl going along with her, encouraging her?

Sophie looked away, clenching her fists. Neither Howl, nor Sarah seemed to notice her obvious anger; or, if they did, they made no comment on it. As Sophie scanned the room, her eyes came to rest on a certain blond head that just so happened to be entering the shop just then. Sophie brightened immediately. Maybe she could do a little improvising with the "plan" Lettie had made.

Sophie turned back to Howl and Sarah who had just started discussing God knows what. "I'm terribly sorry to leave this _wonderful_ conversation, but I simply _must_ say hello to a _very_ good friend," Sophie said. Howl looked up suddenly at these words. As he saw Justin at the counter, his expression turned sour.

"Turnip-head?" Howl said distastefully. "You aren't friends with _him_. I mean, come on." Howl sniffed, turning up his nose.

Sophie stood up and said in her most condescending voice, "_Prince Justin_ is a polite, kind-hearted young man. He is sweet and extremely knowledgeable on practically every topic imaginable. Which is _much_ more than I can say for _some_ people." Perhaps she was laying it on a little too thick, but Howl didn't seem to notice.

"But—" he began to protest before Sophie tromped away.

"Justin?" Sophie dropped the condescending tone, using her regular voice as she approached the prince. At the sound of her voice, the yellow-suited man spun around, halfway through his order.

"Sophie? What are you doing here?" Justin asked in surprise. "Not that I'm not glad to see you!" he added hastily, but Sophie just gave a little laugh at that. She really did like Justin, just not in _that_ way. However, Howl didn't know that.

"I was just here visiting Lettie and I saw you and thought I'd come over and say hi!" Sophie answered. The girl behind the counter cleared her throat loudly, and Sophie realized that she and Justin were holding up the line. "Oh! I'm sorry, please continue with you order."

Justin smiled. "Well, you know this place well, don't you? Why don't you order for me?"

Sophie hesitated, "Well, I'm not quite sure what you are here to get. It's beyond me why a prince would go to a bakery…" she trailed off and Justin gave a light laugh.

"Oh, I just wanted to stop in for something sweet," he said, his eyes smiling at her. "I think I'll take some of that sweetbread, and that cupcake there," he said, pointing to a chocolate cupcake with pink frosting with white hearts. Justin and Sophie waited patiently while they waited for the girl to place Justin's goods into a paper bag with the bakery logo and name scrawled across it in pink lettering.

After Justin took the package from the girl, he gently took a hold of Sophie by the elbow and guided her to a table. As they sat down, Sophie caught sight of Howl watching them out of the corner of her eye. _Good,_ she thought. _Let him watch and wonder._

Justin unwrapped the cupcake and with an exaggerated flourish, presented it to Sophie. "Beautiful maiden, please accept this cupcake as a gesture of my deepest, sincerest gratitude." Sophie giggled as she took the cupcake from him.

"Gratitude for what?" she questioned with a grin.

"For gracing me with your presence, oh beautiful one. I am truly honored," he said standing up and giving her a little bow.

"Oh no," Sophie said, playing along with him by making her tone one of those that rich, royal women use. "No, no, no. My dear sir, it is _I_ who is most honored. To be seated with one such as yourself is the deepest honor a girl like I can ever hope to have." And with this, Sophie sank into the deepest curtsy she could manage, while bowing her head graciously.

Justin somehow kept his expression somber while he strode around the table to her, offering his arm to her. "Well then, you cannot turn down my request for a dance?" he said.

At this Sophie backed away. "What?" she whispered to him. "Are you just playing around or what? There is no music!"

Justin merely smiled and held out his hand. "Trust me," he murmured. And Sophie did. She placed her hand in his and he immediately twirled her into him. She gasped as Justin led her around on a random dance, switching to different dances. First it was a waltz, and then they did an odd little jig, at one point in time they were tangoing. The whole time Sophie was laughing hysterically, having the time of her life. She was sure they must be quite a sight—a couple dancing in the middle of a bakery with no music.

However, just then, the oddest thing happened. People started dancing with them. At first it was one couple, before another one and another one joined. Some people just joined dancing by themselves, and finally practically the entire bakery was full of people dancing randomly to no music or beat.

By this time, Justin had lost his cool composure, and was laughing right along with Sophie. Finally, when Sophie felt like her feet were going to fall off she rose onto her tiptoes to say into Justin's ear, "I have to take a break!" She was worried Justin wouldn't hear her, with all the ruckus of randomly dancing people, but, thankfully, Justin seemed to understand and he led her away into the back bakery room.

Sophie saw a back exit and pulled Justin towards it. "I need some fresh air!" she said, breathing hard. "Now wherever did you get that idea?" she said with a laugh as she and Justin walked through the door. However, as the door slammed shut behind her, Sophie's smile ran away as she stopped short.

Justin nearly ran into Sophie and looked around to see why she had so suddenly halted and stopped laughing. It did not take him long to see Howell Jenkins kissing a girl dressed in waitress uniform for the bakery.

"Howl?" Sophie asked in a small voice.

Howl jerked up and away from Sarah, staring into Sophie's horror stricken face, his expression matching her own. "Sophie I—" he began to frantically say, but Sophie cut him off.

"Liar! Cheat! Evil wizard!" she shouted, angry; but beneath her anger, she felt a pang in her chest and her gut, as if something was ripping. She turned and ran, so Howl wouldn't see the tears in her eyes.

As she ran, Sophie kept seeing the scene replay, over, and over, and over in her head. Howl kissing that waitress, Sarah. Why had she fallen in love with this man when she knew what he was? He was the Wizard Howl, known for breaking and eating the hearts of girls. Why had she thought she was different? For a while, she had thought that, now that he had his heart back, Howl loved her, that she was _special_ somehow. Now she realized what an ignorant fool she had been.

Sophie ran blindly throughout the streets of the town, feeling the tears streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't go back to the moving castle, but she had no idea where she _could_ go. Though Sophie herself did not know where to go, her feet seemed to, and they led her true, to the last place she would have thought of. However, Sophie realized that she needed to be here. This was the place she needed to be to heal her broken heart.

A/N: So, I _think_ that the bakery is in Market Chipping, but I am not positive. If I am wrong, please tell me and I will correct it. All the other stories on this forum say that the prince's name is Prince Justin, so that is what I went with, even though this is a movie version. Again, I am sorry to all those people who are huge fans of the book. If there are any holes or something doesn't align with the movie or there are some errors, please point them out to me! I'm very greedy and want reviews! I will try to update more quickly, I will! I realize that this is a little slow, but it will pick up, please stick with me and trust me!


	5. How Tedious is a Guilty Conscience

Chapter 5: How Tedious is a Guilty Conscience

Sophie was lying in her childhood sanctuary. It was a little shed on the outskirts of the town. The flowers that Sophie had planted there when she was little were all dead, only the pots and dirt remained. Nonetheless, Sophie felt peaceful lying here. As if she had just come home from an exotic vacation that had been exciting but…not home.

When Sophie was little, she would often come here to escape everything. She hadn't been here in years, and there were inches of dust covering the floor and walls, but Sophie didn't care. She loved this little shed.

As she turned her head to see the single wall she had painted light blue to compensate for the lack of windows in the shed, but the smile quickly ran away from her face as she realized something.

That blue was almost the exact color of _his_ eyes. No matter where she went, she couldn't seem to get away from him. His face kept flashing in her mind, and she wondered if she could ever forget about him and move on?

Even as she tried to fight it, the answer was inevitable.

No.

No, no, no, she could never forget and move on. He was her life, and most likely always will be. He would move on, and she would stay, always pining for something she could not have, like the weeping willow. Sophie's tears had dried, but as she thought of Howl, she felt fresh tears filling up her eyes and spilling over onto her cheeks before trickling down and off her chin.

There was a loud crash and Sophie jerked up. The last thing she saw before she blacked out was a flash of strawberry blond hair.

Howl's POV

Howl was pacing back and forth in the moving castle with his head in his hands muttering to himself as Calcifer watched him. "Howl? Howl! Hoowwwwwwwwwwllllllll!" he cried, but Howl ignored him, still muttering to himself. "Howl? Howl, damn it, WHERE IS SOPHIE?" Calcifer screamed the last part, stopping Howl dead in his tracks.

"Sophie?" Howl said, his voice bordering on hysterical. "Where is Sophie?" he said, repeating Calcifer's question in the voice of a madman.

Calcifer sighed as he sank down into his logs. "Yes. Sophie. You know, silver hair, sweet composure, plain dresses, and there was something else about her, now what was it? Oh yeah, she's just YOUR TRUE LOVE."

"Sophie," Howl muttered, wringing his hands, unable to string any thoughts together. "Sophie, Sophie, Sophie. Where is Sophie?"

Calcifer groaned. "I think we've already established that neither of us has any idea where Sophie is. Now, can we pull ourselves together and find out where Sophie is?" Calcifer said, obviously annoyed. Howl had no idea where Markl was, and, quite frankly, didn't care.

"Pull ourselves together," he muttered, repeating Calcifer's words as if he was drowning and those words were his lifeline. "Find out where Sophie is."

Calcifer groaned and settled down to let the wizard finish his crazy ranting.

Exactly one hour later, there was a knock on the door and Howl's hysterics were slowly dying down. He regained himself enough to go over and open the door. Standing outside on his doorstep, was Lettie, looking frantic and angry at the same time. "Howl! Have you seen Sophie?"

Howl stared down at her, and his hysterical expression was answer enough for her. Behind Lettie stood Prince Justin, who also looked very angry. Howl vaguely remembered that Prince Justin had run after Sophie. Justin stepped forward, his hands clenching into fists, and Lettie restrained him. "_You_," he hissed, bursting at the seams with anger. "_You are_, by _far_, the most _idiotic_, _hypocritical_, _daft_, _senseless_, _foolish_, _reckless_, _foolhardy_, _irresponsible_, _thoughtless_, _careless_, miserable excuse for a wizard I have _ever_ met!"

"Justin, calm down. We have to be sensible. Howl has no idea where Sophie is, which means we have to put our heads together and decide what to do about it," Lettie begged tugging at Justin's sleeves.

By this time, Howl's head had cleared and he suddenly remembered how Justin had been dancing with Sophie. That was the entire reason he had walked outside with Sarah was to get away from the image of Sophie with someone else. He hadn't _meant_ for the kiss to happen. One minute he had been just closing his eyes, trying to convince himself that Sophie loved _him_ and that she and Justin were just friends, and the next, Sarah was kissing him and wrapped his arms around her right before the door had opened and Sophie had emerged.

"That's right, Turnip-Head," Howl muttered disdainfully. "Listen to Lettie. Of course, we probably don't need _your_ head, this issue doesn't involve picking between the white hat or the black hat."

Lettie turned to glare at Howl. "Watch yourself! This is entirely your fault! If you aren't careful with what you say, I might just let Justin wring your neck and I would probably enjoy watching you scream!"

Howl looked at her incredulously, but remained silent. It _was_ his fault, and his guilt began to overcome him again as he felt tendrils of hysteria, once again, wrapping themselves around his conscience.

Lettie took a deep breath. "All right, we need to figure out where Sophie might have gone. First of all, no one has seen her since she ran away from the bakery an hour or two ago?"

The entire party shook their heads. Justin spoke up, "Howl, aren't you supposed to be a wizard? Can't you just use magic to find out where Sophie is?"

Howl was surprised, he hadn't thought of that. "Yes…yes there is a spell! I just need an iris…and chalk—where's my chalk? My chalk, my chalk…" he muttered searching around his cluttered worktable for what he needed. Lettie shook her head as Howl frantically shoved through the chaotic piles trying to find his chalk. "Here it is!" he cried triumphantly as he emerged from the jumbled mess of spell-books, potions, and ingredients. Then his face fell.

Lettie saw his expression change and immediately grew wary. "What is it?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

Howl sighed. "I need an iris. I could go search for one in Sophie's flower field, but we don't have time for that."

Lettie reached up and plucked a purple flower from her hair. "Will this do?"

Howl's eyes widened. Why did she have an iris? This struck Howl as an odd and suspicious coincidence, but he didn't question it, as long as it would lead him to Sophie. He merely gave Lettie a curt nod before gently taking the bloom from her and placing it on the ground. He crouched down and drew a few symbols surrounding the sweet smelling blossom before standing up, placing himself beside it.

He turned to where Lettie and Justin waited with impatient expressions on their faces. Justin even less patient than Lettie asked, "Well? Do you know where she is? Or did it not work?"

Howl rolled his eyes. "I haven't cast the spell, idiot."

"Oh."

Howl took a deep breath, calling up an image of Sophie. She was with him in the flower field he had given her, twirling around, her shining silver hair swirling behind her. He raised his left arm out and sucked in a deep breath as he called his magic. He felt his hair swirl up on the breeze of his magic and suddenly a vision came to him. It was of a mountain that was rising up out of a sea of grass. _What the…_ Howl thought with a start. He knew that mountain! That was where…where _she_ lived. _Oh god,_ Howl thought. _Not _her_!_ He had hoped to never see that woman again. However, it seemed that fate had other plans… Just then an image of Sophie came to him and he felt his emotions all twist up into one stream of anger.

Sophie was lying on a floor, seemingly unconscious, with her hands tied behind her back and a gag over her mouth. Howl's anger flared up even more as she moaned, he would kill that woman! She would pay for doing this to his Sophie!

Howl opened his eyes, and Lettie and Justin immediately pounced. "Did you find her?"

"Is she okay?"

"Where is she?"

"How do we get to her?"

"Is she harmed?"

"_Quiet!_" Howl growled at them in a threatening enough tone to get them to shut up. "Sophie is…" he trailed off, his voice breaking along with his heart as he recalled the image of her curled up on the floor. "She's in a mountain."

Justin stared for a moment before answering. "A mountain. How descriptive, that narrows it down."

Howl glared at Justin, clenching his fists in impatience. They needed to _move_ to get to Sophie, and get her out of there so he could _destroy_ that woman. They didn't have time for explanations. "Shut up Justin, I know where this mountain is, so we have to get _moving_. Now. I'll explain as we go." And without another word, he strode up the stairs to where he had the flying machine stored for an emergency.

A/N: Sorry about the length of this one, I know it is a little short, but I have to end here because I want to get it up, and I have so many projects and tests to get through, so it might be a little wait for the next chapter. Also, sorry for not updating sooner, again, I've been busy, but I will try to get it up ASAP. Again, reviews are always, always appreciated! Also, the title of this chapter is a quote by John Webster. I thought it fitting because a lot of this chapter is about Howl feeling guilty… Until next time!


	6. To Save the Day

A/N: I know, I know. It's been forever since I've updated. Please forgive me! I was lacking inspiration for a while. Then I found that this chapter was extremely hard to write. I'll try to update sooner—I have a very long list of excuses as to why I haven't updated, but you're probably here to read the story, not listen to me ramble right? So, on to chapter 6!

Chapter 6: To Save the Day

Lettie's POV

Lettie and Justin scrambled after Howl as he shoved the flying machine to the mouth of the flying castle. "Howl, explain to us where Sophie is! Is Sophie okay? Is she hurt?" Lettie repeated for probably the 15th time. Howl merely growled something about explaining later.

"No!" Lettie cried stomping her foot. "Stop avoiding my questions! Tell me where Sophie is, and if she is okay or not!" Lettie knew she was acting childish, but she didn't care. "Sophie is _my_ sister, and I want to know what is going on with her! Neither of you are actually related to Sophie, and I grew up with her, and I am closest to her of the three of us, closer to her than even you, Howl! The entire _reason_ she's gone is because you were kissing someone else! I just want to find Sophie, and then I don't care what happens to you!" Lettie cried pointing a finger at Howl. "You can rot in hell for all I care!"

As Lettie came to the end of her rant, she realized that both Howl and Justin were staring at her. Self-consciously, she crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. "What?"

Justin looked away immediately, the polite gentleman that he was. However, Howl was not a polite gentleman, so he replied, "You, my friend, are a spoilt brat." He said this so casually that it took Lettie a moment to realize what he had said. Therefore, by the time she realized that she should be angry at this; it was past the point of argument, so she let it drop. However, he would pay in due time.

Howl leapt lightly up onto the side of the vehicle, motioning for Lettie and Justin to sit in the seats. Justin allowed Lettie to climb in first, and as they clambered in after Howl, Howl started the engine. It was not long before they were soaring out and away from the castle over the Wastes.

After a few minutes of silence, Justin finally spoke up. "Howl, I think now you should explain to us where Sophie is." Lettie's pride was too injured for her to say this, even though it had been what she had been thinking.

Howl sighed and nodded. "Alright. Sophie is being held captive by a witch. She was—is—beautiful. So, I wooed her. I was with her for quite a long time, until one day, she saw me with, ah, another individual of the female gender. She grew quite angry with me. She dumped me, and told me that she would make sure that I was tortured for the rest of my life. After she dumped me, I was rather upset. I ended up calling the dark spirits, giving Markl quite a fright, but after that we went on with our lives and all was well. Of course, then I met Sophie and…you know the story from there."

Lettie was silent for a moment before she spoke. "So Sophie is being held captive by a witch that you annoyed enough for her to go after Sophie to get to you?"

"Well, yes."

"So, yet again, this is completely your fault."

Howl blinked, "Well…technically speaking—"

"I don't care about any of your 'technically speaking' crap! The entire reason my sister is being held captive by a witch is because you were with two different people when you were in a relationship! Twice! This is completely your fault and you are going to fix this and if anything happens to Sophie it will be your fault!"

Howl blinked, "But…but I wasn't actually _with_ Sarah! She just kissed me!"

However, Lettie was not discouraged. "But you let her kiss you! And that is just as bad as you kissing her!"

"I shoved her off of me as soon as she kissed me!"

"Not my point! You kissed her, it's all you fault!"

"Howl!" Justin bellowed. As Howl and Lettie had been arguing, Howl had let the flying machine go off course, and they were headed straight for a mountain. "We're going to crash!"

Howl let out a string of curse words and grabbed for the wheel, but it was too late. There was a loud crash and Howl, Lettie, and Justin were thrown from the machine.

Sophie's POV

Ouch.

That was the first thought Sophie had as she felt herself slowly regaining conscience. The second was, _Where am I?_

And the third thought Sophie had when she woke up, was _Where is Howl?_

The opening of her eyes revealed that Sophie was in a room of stone, with no visible door. As she tried to move her limbs, she found that her arms and legs were bound. As she tried to move her jaw and met resistance and pain, she realized that she was gagged. Breathing through her nose, she found that she could turn her head with little pain. As she struggled to sit up, turning her head to take in her surroundings, she saw stone to her right, but as her head moved left she jumped when she saw a woman sitting in a plush comfy chair. The woman was tall, with strawberry blond hair and golden eyes that shown like the sun. She was beautiful, with a perfect, sculpted body, all of her features elegant.

The woman sneered at her. "Well then, the little brat's awake."

Instinctively Sophie tried to reply, but after a spout of gagging remembered that she, in fact, could not talk with a gag. She made do with narrowing her eyes at the woman.

"What was that?" The woman mocked. "I'm sorry I can't quite—can't quite understand you—you seem to have something over your mouth." She snickered.

Sophie shook her head vehemently and struggled against her bindings.

"Oh, are you trying to get out of my bindings? How cute. You obviously don't know much at all. Well then, I'm going to have some fun, telling you the whole story," the woman sneered. "You see, I was once with Howl, much like the way you are currently with Howl. Then, much like you, I found him with another woman one day. I, of course, dumped him and then vowed that I would find a way to make him pay for the humiliation he put me through!" The woman's eyes were livid at this point, and Sophie could see that she really was out for revenge.

_But Howl didn't have a heart then, he can't be held responsible for those actions!_ Sophie thought desperately.

Almost as if reading her mind, the woman said "You are probably thinking that he shouldn't take any blame because he didn't have a heart at the time?" She chuckled as Sophie's eyes widened at the woman having guessed her thoughts. "Really, did you expect me _not_ to guess what you are thinking? Silly humans—they are always so naïve and predictable. I, you see, am a witch. Witch Aurora, the best of the best. I would have been a fit match for Howl—a beautiful, talented magic user. What are you? A silly, plain, little girl. I just wanted to show you that you could never be enough for Howl—he wants a beautiful talented woman. Not some hopeless little girl like you."

_What does she mean she wanted to show me I could never be enough for Howl?_ Sophie wondered. _But nonetheless, she's right. Howl would never want me. I saw that when I saw him kissing that Sarah girl._

"Do you remember that waitress, Sarah?" the Aurora questioned, and Sophie jerked harder against her bonds. "Oh, stop trying to get free—it won't work. Those knots are magically tied. Anyway, that girl wasn't even real." Sophie stilled and stared up at the woman with wide eyes. "That was me," the Aurora said as she began to morph, her features changing into those of the waitress Sarah from the bakery that Lettie worked at.

Sophie made a noise of surprise and Sarah/Aurora snickered. "Yes. I was Sarah the waitress. This is just to show you that Howl doesn't care about anyone. All it takes is a pretty face, and he is hooked. For the time being at least. Of course, I don't know what it was about _you_ that he found so interesting—such a plain little girl! But no matter, no matter. Now do you see what a monster Howl really is? He would leave you just like that for a girl that isn't even real." Aurora _tsk-tsk_ed, "You really should be grateful to me. I showed you that Howl really doesn't care about you. For all you know, every time he goes out, he could be with a different girl each time." She smirked. "In fact, I'd be willing to bet he's with one right now."

Sophie felt tears prickling her eyes, threatening to surface. "No…Howl…wouldn't…" Sophie spit out between gags. "He..." _gag, gag, gag,_ "loves…" _gag, gag, gag,_ "me…" _gag, gag, gag_.

Aurora _tsk-tsk_ed some more, "Oh, you poor little dove. Howl really has his claws sunk deep into you, doesn't he? Poor, poor little bird. You really must move on. Are you quite sure he loves you? I mean, you have been here quite a while and he still hasn't come for you. Perhaps he is just happy that you are gone and out of his hair."

Sophie blinked back tears, how long _had_ she been here? Why hadn't Howl come for her yet? Was he really just not going to bother with her anymore?

Howl's POV

"Lettie? Justin? Are you guys okay?" Howl asked frantically, flailing his limbs about, trying to find out where he was. All he could see was darkness.

"I'm fine!" a girl's voice called out from somewhere to the left of Howl.

"I'm okay," called a second, lower pitched voice from somewhere ahead of Howl.

Howl's hand found rubble and he scrabbled at it with his fingers, trying to claw his way out of wherever they were. "How are we going to get out of here?" Howl bellowed frustrated beyond belief. He needed to get to Sophie and rescue her!

Justin's voice came hollering back, "I have no idea! You're the one who crashed the flying machine!"

Howl kept frantically scrabbling blindly, "I can't get out!" he yelled.

Lettie's voice screamed at him. "_What are you talking about!_" she screeched. "_Are you a wizard or aren't you?_"

Howl was taken aback that he had not thought of that earlier. "Oh," was all he said. He hated being wrong.

"Justin, Lettie, curl up on the ground, I'm not sure which way is the entrance so I'm going to blast in all directions and I don't want to hurt either of you," Howl said, slowly regaining his calmness.

Summoning his magic, Howl sent a powerful surge of it in all directions. Rock crumble and bits of rock flew everywhere. But then there was light shining through a hole and he ran to it. Howl heard footsteps behind him and knew Justin and Lettie had joined him. They were standing just inside a mountain. Unfortunately, it was not the mountain of their destination.

Looking down, Howl saw the flying machine—destroyed—at the foot of the mountain. He turned to Lettie and Justin. "Well, then, it's settled. We are going to have to fly."

Lettie looked at Howl in confusion. "Fly? But the machine is destroyed!"

Howl merely smiled at her mysteriously.

_Hold one Sophie_ he thought. _I'm coming._


	7. I Fly to You

Chapter 7: I Fly to You

Lettie's POV

Lettie's fingers were turning white from the death grip she had on Howl's arm. When he said they were going to fly, this was _not_ what she had had in mind. This wasn't flying. There was nothing between her and the very, very hard ground, save a few thousand feet of thin air.

She squeezed her eyes shut, but then become terrified of the feeling of walking on nothing and immediately had to open her eyes. Of course, then she saw, with fresh eyes, the ground that was sickeningly far beneath them.

"You really aren't as good as Sophie," Howl remarked. "She picked it up after just a few seconds, you however…" He trailed off, but Lettie could hear the subtext loud and clear. She still wasn't getting it, and was stumbling every other step. She would have punched Howl if it weren't for the fact that he was the only thing holding her up. So she settled on glaring at him.

Of course, that was ruined by the fact that she was desperately clinging to him for dear life.

Justin, of course, was having no trouble with this whole "walking on air" thing—a fact that was annoying Lettie to no end. But her thoughts were immediately ripped from jealousy when Howl cried out, "There! That's the mountain!"

Lettie looked around frantically, "Which one?!" They were surrounded by mountains.

Howl's hands were full as he was guiding Lettie and Justin, but he was gesticulating wildly with his head in a certain direction and Lettie finally figured out which mountain he was indicating. "Can't we go any faster?!" Justin practically shouted as he leaned forward further—as if that would help.

Howl cast a glance at Lettie—who was _still_ struggling with this, "Well, not if we don't want Lettie to fall—which, by the way, I'm perfectly fine with. I just think Sophie may have a few objections to us sending her sister to her gruesome death."

Alright, that was it. Lettie didn't care if he was the only thing holding her up. She twisted and punched him in the gut as hard as she could when she was anxiously clinging to him with her other arm. And despite the fact that all of physics was working against her, she thought it was a pretty good punch. Howl, of course, didn't make a sound, but at least Lettie was able to get some of her never-ending anger out.

Justin immediately began planning, "Alright, we should make a plan—maybe land in an out-of-the-way place where no one will notice us—is there anyone else there besides that witch and Sophie? Does she have servants? Or any other personnel for that matter? It would be best if we could find a place that no one ever uses. Maybe if we…"

Howl's POV

Howl tuned Justin out after the word "plan" left his mouth.

Howl wasn't going to plan anything. No, scratch that. He did have a plan. Save Sophie. There—a perfectly reasonable plan, right? _Not too shabby for someone who usually just wings it,_ Howl thought.

Howl closed his eyes, and used his tracking spell to locate the exact location of Sophie. _There._ Howl sped them up, and stopped walking. He heard Lettie swallow the beginnings of a scream, and flew faster towards the side of the mountain. He pushed a force of magic just ahead of him and prepared to demolish the side of the mountain separating him from his Sophie.

Justin's annoying voice butted into his thoughts, "Howl, what are you doing?! We need to find somewhere safe to land where no one will notice—"

They crashed into the side of the mountain and tumbled to the floor of a room.

Sophie's POV

The wall crashed in, and three figures toppled to the ground.

"Or you could do that," one of the figures mumbled, face-first in the ground.

That voice…Sophie knew that voice! That was…that was…Justin! Sophie was overjoyed. She looked closer at the three figures. One was Justin. Another was…Lettie! And the third was…

The third was _him_.

**A/N: I'm alive! I am! I don't think I've updated this in over a year…I am so sorry about that. I think I was originally going to just give this up, but then I thought "How could I be so CRUEL? I can't end it there!" And I opened up my laptop, and started typing. Please forgive me for being that evil person who leaves the chapter at a cliff-hanger and then just STOPS UPDATING. I really am sorry. I will make it up to you! I promise. But you know what would be GREAT motivation for me? Reviews. That's right people. Reviews are the air I breathe. They are the things that fuel this story (or, at the very least, the things that fuel ME to write the story).**

**I swear to you I'm not dead.**

**Or maybe I am. Maybe I am a zombie and I am right outside your house right now. I WILL EAT YOUR BRAINS. Unless you review! So, you have a choice here: review and keep your brains, or I can eat them up and use your brains as fuel instead of reviews…it's your choice.**


	8. You Are Never Alone

Chapter 8: You Are Never Alone

Howl's POV

Howl sprang to his feet. His eyes scanned the room frantically until they fell upon the most beautiful and the most terrible sight he had ever seen.

Sophie, beautiful, sweet, innocent, radiant Sophie.

Sophie, bound, gagged, puffy eyes and matted hair, her beautiful brown eyes full of elation, yet also hurt and…anger? _Oh Sophie,_ Howl thought. _Sophie my beautiful. Sophie my love. Sophie my life._

Howl started for Sophie, a low, guttural sound escaping his lips without his bidding. The sight of her, bound and gagged would forever be imprinted in his mind. It tore him apart to see her in any pain whatsoever.

However, a magical barrier shimmered into being, separating him from Sophie. Outraged, Howl slammed against it with all his force, both magical and physical, but he could not reach Sophie. "Sophie!" he called, frantic, a deep need within him to get to her.

"Uh-uh," a voice called from his left. "Not so fast. You didn't think I would just let you barge in here—rudely uninvited, I might add—and take away my sweet little prize, now did you?"

At the sound of the voice he had known oh-so-well, Howl turned. "Aurora," he spat. "Let her go. This quarrel is between you and me. It has nothing to do with her."

The witch merely smiled. "That's where you're wrong, Howl," she said. "This has everything to do with her. She has held your very heart in her hands. And she gave it back to you. Something like that has to leave an imprint of some kind. She has literally touched your heart, and she has been imprinted into your very being. Your soul will know her always. When she feels love, you feel love. When she feels sadness, you feel sadness.

"And, this is the most important part,"—the witch's upper lip curled into a sneer—"when she feels pain, you feel pain." Those final words filled Howl with the worst kind of dread imaginable.

And then, suddenly, almost too quickly for Howl to see, Aurora was upon Sophie, a dagger flashing in her hand. "Sophie!" Howl roared, and once again slammed into the magical barrier, attempting to reach her. Desperate to save her.

As the witch dipped her dagger to Sophie's arm, Howl nearly screamed. He had to get to Sophie, to save her. As he watched in horror, Aurora sliced the dagger along Sophie's upper arm. Sophie cried out, and a split-second later, Howl hissed in pain as a burning sensation shot up his arm, as if Aurora had cut _him_.

The witch continued to slice cuts on Sophie. On her arms, across her stomach, even on her cheek. They were shallow cuts that weren't hitting any main arteries or veins, but Howl felt every one of them, and more pain at his Sophie's pain.

Then, something tackled Aurora, and she was so startled that the knife clattered from her hand and the force field she was using to keep Howl away from Sophie faltered, just for a moment.

But a moment was enough for Howl. He lunged forward, sending all his magic into a blast to send Aurora flying away from Sophie. Howl reached Sophie and dragged her into his arms, cradling her face in his hands. Sophie was mute with shock it seemed, and she just stared up at him, her beautiful brown eyes huge.

Sophie's POV

Sophie stared up at Howl. "Howl?" she said softly, barely daring to believe it. "You…" she trailed off laughing softly.

Howl looked confused. "What are you laughing about?" he said, and his voice warmed her heart.

Sophie smiled up at him. "I just," she said, laughing a little more. "I just thought I was alone."

Howl stared at her for a moment, before smiling down at her. "You are never alone," he whispered before kissing her forehead.

Howl's POV

Howl wanted nothing more than to just lie there with Sophie in his arms forever, but he knew that Aurora had to be dealt with, so he gently released Sophie before standing up and turning to face Aurora.

And what he saw froze him in his tracks. Aurora had always been foolish, but _this_? Howl couldn't believe it.

**A/N: Ooooh! What happens next?**

**I'm so sorry that I've been leaving really short chapters lately. Thank you all so much for your reviews! Sarah James, I'm glad you'd like to keep your brains. Jasmine Si, it's really nice to know that I put some entertainment into your life. Comments like that warm my heart and make me feel all fuzzy on the inside! Summer Blooms, don't worry, that will come up again, he was being mysterious for a reason.**

**Thank you all for your reviews! This will be my last chapter of 2012! Happy New Year!**


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